A CHIEF MINISTER vs A SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
The spat that occurred between the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand and an elderly lady school teacher should have sparked greater public indignation than it did. This highly ungainly incident took place on June 27, 2018 during an open public forum meeting being held by the CM to hear the citizens’ grievances
According to the brief details of the incident reported by the media, the lady called Uttara Pant Bahuguna has been continuously serving in remote locations of Uttarakhand for more than two decades. On June 27, she went to the Chief Minister’s janta darbar, requesting for her transfer to Dehradun so that she could look after her two children, who were stationed there. Her husband had died in 2015. Her argument was that she could not afford to leave her job and also not allow her children to be deprived of parental care ( unko anath nahin chor sakti.)
The lady’s grievance appeared legitimate and her demand genuine. A mature response would have been to assure her that her request would be examined and she would be informed of the decision in due course. Instead the CM unnecessarily lost his cool and tried to be dismissive towards her. In the beginning, the school principal was stating her case calmly and confidently. What apparently disturbed the CM was that her tone was not submissive. The politicians are used to expect such petitioners to cringe and grovel before them. This is what the lady teacher did not do and this probably hurt the C M ‘s ego. He exploded, asking her to leave, threatening her with suspension and even arrest. The video clearly shows him shouting “Suspend her immediately; take her into police custody.” A policeman tried to snatch the mike from the lady, asking her to leave the place. It was only at this stage that the teacher got very agitated and used a few offensive words
The government was very quick to suspend the teacher next day. The order stated two grounds for suspension. One, she attended the CM’s janta darbar without permission and, two, her undignified behaviour was a violation of employees’ code of conduct.
Rule 4 of the Uttarakhand Government Servant (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 2003, states:
"(1) A Government Servant against whose conduct an inquiry is contemplated, or is proceeding may be placed under suspension pending the conclusion of the inquiry in the discretion of the Appointing Authority:
Provided that suspension should not be resorted to unless the allegations against the Government Servant are so serious that in the event of their being established may ordinarily warrant major penalty”
None of the two grounds stated in the suspension order would warrant major penalty proceedings. The High Court of Uttarakhand has clearly ruled in a case (S.K. Goel v. State of Uttaranchal & Another, 2005 (2) U.D. 11): “Hence, an order of suspension should not be passed lightly, casually or without proper application of mind." It is clear that the suspension order in the teacher’s case was more a result of the Chief Minister’s pique than any application of mind.
According to a media report, the lady was also arrested, but later released. In case this was done, a relevant question to ask is: under what authority, could the Chief Minister issue orders to arrest a person, who had not committed any crime. We in this country have become so accustomed to seeing the politicians and bureaucrats issuing illrgal orders that no eyebrows are raised. Arresting a person suspected to be involved in the commission of a cognizable offence is a part of the process of law enforcement and has, therefore, to be governed by the provisions of law. Law does not empower any person, however high he may be, outside the law enforcement machinery to take such decisions.
The Chief Minister’s summary disposal of lady teacher’s request for transfer brings another harsh reality into focus.. An RTI query reveals that the Chief Minister’s own wife Sunita is a teacher and has been continuously posted in Dehradun since 1996. She was not posted out even after she was promoted. It shows that persons with right connections succeed in manipulating transfers and postings of their choice. It is this unequal application of rules, that creates helpless bitterness of the type exhibited by Ms Bahuguna.
The spat that occurred between the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand and an elderly lady school teacher should have sparked greater public indignation than it did. This highly ungainly incident took place on June 27, 2018 during an open public forum meeting being held by the CM to hear the citizens’ grievances
According to the brief details of the incident reported by the media, the lady called Uttara Pant Bahuguna has been continuously serving in remote locations of Uttarakhand for more than two decades. On June 27, she went to the Chief Minister’s janta darbar, requesting for her transfer to Dehradun so that she could look after her two children, who were stationed there. Her husband had died in 2015. Her argument was that she could not afford to leave her job and also not allow her children to be deprived of parental care ( unko anath nahin chor sakti.)
The lady’s grievance appeared legitimate and her demand genuine. A mature response would have been to assure her that her request would be examined and she would be informed of the decision in due course. Instead the CM unnecessarily lost his cool and tried to be dismissive towards her. In the beginning, the school principal was stating her case calmly and confidently. What apparently disturbed the CM was that her tone was not submissive. The politicians are used to expect such petitioners to cringe and grovel before them. This is what the lady teacher did not do and this probably hurt the C M ‘s ego. He exploded, asking her to leave, threatening her with suspension and even arrest. The video clearly shows him shouting “Suspend her immediately; take her into police custody.” A policeman tried to snatch the mike from the lady, asking her to leave the place. It was only at this stage that the teacher got very agitated and used a few offensive words
The government was very quick to suspend the teacher next day. The order stated two grounds for suspension. One, she attended the CM’s janta darbar without permission and, two, her undignified behaviour was a violation of employees’ code of conduct.
Rule 4 of the Uttarakhand Government Servant (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 2003, states:
"(1) A Government Servant against whose conduct an inquiry is contemplated, or is proceeding may be placed under suspension pending the conclusion of the inquiry in the discretion of the Appointing Authority:
Provided that suspension should not be resorted to unless the allegations against the Government Servant are so serious that in the event of their being established may ordinarily warrant major penalty”
None of the two grounds stated in the suspension order would warrant major penalty proceedings. The High Court of Uttarakhand has clearly ruled in a case (S.K. Goel v. State of Uttaranchal & Another, 2005 (2) U.D. 11): “Hence, an order of suspension should not be passed lightly, casually or without proper application of mind." It is clear that the suspension order in the teacher’s case was more a result of the Chief Minister’s pique than any application of mind.
According to a media report, the lady was also arrested, but later released. In case this was done, a relevant question to ask is: under what authority, could the Chief Minister issue orders to arrest a person, who had not committed any crime. We in this country have become so accustomed to seeing the politicians and bureaucrats issuing illrgal orders that no eyebrows are raised. Arresting a person suspected to be involved in the commission of a cognizable offence is a part of the process of law enforcement and has, therefore, to be governed by the provisions of law. Law does not empower any person, however high he may be, outside the law enforcement machinery to take such decisions.
The Chief Minister’s summary disposal of lady teacher’s request for transfer brings another harsh reality into focus.. An RTI query reveals that the Chief Minister’s own wife Sunita is a teacher and has been continuously posted in Dehradun since 1996. She was not posted out even after she was promoted. It shows that persons with right connections succeed in manipulating transfers and postings of their choice. It is this unequal application of rules, that creates helpless bitterness of the type exhibited by Ms Bahuguna.
